Bay Area News

Peninsula readers' letters: July 16

From Daily News Group readers

Posted:
07/15/2014 07:22:49 PM PDT

Updated:
07/16/2014 12:37:59 AM PDT

Business as usual in Palo Alto

Dear Editor: Less than three weeks after the Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury chastised the Palo Alto City Council and staff for negotiating with developer John Arrillaga "in a way to avoid public scrutiny," we now learn that city leaders used a consent calendar vote to award a $4.5 million City Hall lobby renovation to a sole bidder without public discussion.

Is anyone really surprised that municipal officials continue to conduct community commerce on the sly? Bad behavior doesn't stop in the absence of negative consequences. Just ask any parent, pet caretaker or psychology student. But don't ask City Hall, where replicating the same wrongdoings without penalty is simply business as usual.

Jaclyn Schrier,

Palo Alto

Connoisseurs' Marketplace

Dear Editor: Menlo Park has done a great job of embracing the Connoisseurs' Marketplace. They erected signage announcing the closure of the downtown district streets for the entire weekend. So far, so good. Unfortunately, the Connoisseurs' Marketplace is next weekend, not this past one. I guess calender reading is not a prerequisite for city employment.

David Krauss,

Menlo Park

Anti-Semitic rant

Advertisement

Dear Editor: Israel has been criticized, rightly or wrongly, often and a lot. And there is nothing wrong with it. But when the criticism is based on falsehoods and straight lies, then it turns into anti-Semitism, as has been typical throughout millennia.

Mike Caggiano's July 15 letter propagates the lies about bloodthirsty Jews committing murderous crimes against innocent Gazans, who are simply "lobbing a few rockets into Israel." I would like to see Caggiano's reaction if 70 percent of Americans were forced to live under constant bombardment and incessant sirens.

The anti-Semites are driven nuts while witnessing the success of the Israeli defense forces in employing the latest advancements in air warfare with their Iron Dome technology. Once again, against all odds, Jews have found a way to survive. And this is the unforgivable sin, in the anti-Semitic mind.

Caggiano insists that Israel "excels" at supplying "the Israeli public with a sufficient number of Palestinian corpses to satisfy their need for a good body count." This is beneath even Joseph Goebbels' propaganda. Life is too short to waste it on anti-Semitic ranting.